Obadiah 1:2,3,4

No nation is an island to themselves. How we treat others is how we will be treated. Because God shows partially to no one, all nations will be judged on the mercy and compassion that they extend to others. 

God hates pride and arrogance.

In 586 b.c. Nebuchadnezzar’s army crushed Judah and destroyed Jerusalem and Solomon’s temple, ending Judah’s existence as an independent nation. Edom, as a closely related nation, should have helped Judah’s refugees. But instead of offering sympathy and help, Edom handed Judeans over to the conquering Babylonians. The Edomites even murdered some of the refugees.

In the grand scheme of the biblical message of God’s redemption of fallen humanity, the Book of Obadiah may seem to be of little importance. But its portion of that message is tremendously vital. God is sovereign over all nations, whether they acknowledge His sovereignty or not. God desires that we show mercy and favor to our neighbors in their time of distress.

God would bring about a reversal of Edom’s inflated self-importance. Some of the mountain peaks of Edom reach over six thousand feet; Jerusalem is about 2,300 feet above sea level. Edom’s presumed physical safety led the Edomites to become haughty; this would be their downfall. Trusting in its high places and mountainous strongholds, Edom reckoned that no one could bring it to account for its actions.

 Obadiah 1:2-4

² “Behold, I will make you small among the nations;

You shall be greatly despised.

³ The pride of your heart has deceived you,

You who dwell in the clefts of the rock,

Whose habitation is high;

You who say in your heart, ‘Who will bring me down to the ground?’

⁴ Though you ascend as high as the eagle,

And though you set your nest among the stars,

From there I will bring you down,” says the Lord.

¹⁶ Your fierceness has deceived you, The pride of your heart, O you who dwell in the clefts of the rock, Who hold the height of the hill! Though you make your nest as high as the eagle, I will bring you down from there,” says the Lord. 

Jeremiah 49:16

⁷ In the measure that she glorified herself and lived luxuriously, in the same measure give her torment and sorrow; for she says in her heart, ‘I sit as queen, and am no widow, and will not see sorrow.’ 

Revelation 18:7

Acts 21:26-29

Events are not always as they appear to be. The whole of a story is the sum of its parts. 

Don't judge the actions of others prematurely.

Although Paul had not done any of the things he was being accused of…they were judging him and finding him guilty. We must be very careful not to allow our thoughts to supersede God’s.

Acts 21:26-29

²⁶ Then Paul took the men, and the next day, having been purified with them, entered the temple to announce the expiration of the days of purification, at which time an offering should be made for each one of them.

²⁷ Now when the seven days were almost ended, the Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd and laid hands on him, ²⁸ crying out, “Men of Israel, help! This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against the people, the law, and this place; and furthermore he also brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place.” ²⁹ (For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the temple.)

¹⁹ serving the Lord with all humility, with many tears and trials which happened to me by the plotting of the Jews; 

Acts 20:19

¹⁸ in the midst of which some Jews from Asia found me purified in the temple, neither with a mob nor with tumult. 

Acts 24:18

¹³ They also set up false witnesses who said, “This man does not cease to speak blasphemous words against this holy place and the law; 

Acts 6:13

⁶ He even tried to profane the temple, and we seized him, and wanted to judge him according to our law. 

Acts 24:6

Nahum 1:7-8

In Him, with Him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit… we are preserved until the Lord returns. We are safe in His righteousness not ours.

Because we know that the Lord is good, we can endure the tribulations of life.

How does the mood of the Book of Nahum accord with the sentiment of the Sermon on the Mount? Although the Lord Jesus certainly spoke of loving one’s enemies, He strongly warned of the inevitability of judgment. He said that “all who take the sword will perish by the sword” (Matthew  26:52). If ever the words of Jesus concerning the sure destruction of those who live by violence had a direct application, it was to Nineveh. In the conquest of the ancient world, the Assyrians were merciless and cruel.. In many ways, the Book of Nahum is a theology of the maxim of the sword. Nineveh had an international reputation for bloodthirsty acts of repression, destruction, and wantonness. God could not be good if He failed to call such an evil nation to account. The theology of the Book of Nahum is a theology of the goodness of God in bringing about the final destruction of those who oppose His will and abuse His people.

Nahum 1:7-8

⁷    The Lord is good,

A stronghold in the day of trouble;

And He knows those who trust in Him.

⁸     But with an overflowing flood

He will make an utter end of its place,

And darkness will pursue His enemies.

⁸ Good and upright is the Lord; Therefore He teaches sinners in the way. 

Psalm 25:8

³⁹ But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in the time of trouble. 

Psalm 37:39

⁴⁰ And the Lord shall help them and deliver them; He shall deliver them from the wicked, And save them, Because they trust in Him. 

Psalm 37:40

⁵ For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations. 

Psalm 100:5

²⁵ The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, To the soul who seeks Him. 

Lamentations 3:25

¹⁴ I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. 

John 10:14

¹⁹ Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” 

2 Timothy 2:19

Acts 21:35

Sometimes the biggest obstructionists of the truth are the people in the pews.

Jesus is God’s Word, His truth, manifested to His creation. Jesus is His gift of salvation to mankind.

obstructionism

noun

the practice of deliberately impeding or delaying the course of procedures.

obstructionist

Acts 21:35

 ³⁵ When he reached the stairs, he had to be carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the mob. ³⁶ For the multitude of the people followed after, crying out, “Away with him!”

²² And they listened to him until this word, and then they raised their voices and said, “Away with such a fellow from the earth, for he is not fit to live!” 

Acts 22:22

¹⁸ And they all cried out at once, saying, “Away with this Man, and release to us Barabbas”—

Luke 23:18

¹⁵ But they cried out, “Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, ^m“We have no king but Caesar!” 

John 19:15

Daniel 12:1-3

Salvation belongs to the Lord. 

In Jesus Christ we are saved. Through the power of the Holy Spirit we are refined and changed.

The simplicity of the Gospel changes lives from the inside out.

Those who shall be delivered are those whose names are written in the book of life, God’s record of those who have been justified by faith.

Daniel 12:1.2.3.

12 “At that time Michael shall stand up,

The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people;

And there shall be a time of trouble,

Such as never was since there was a nation,

Even to that time.

And at that time your people shall be delivered,

Every one who is found written in the book.

² And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake,

Some to everlasting life,

Some to shame and everlasting contempt.

³ Those who are wise shall shine

Like the brightness of the firmament,

And those who turn many to righteousness

Like the stars forever and ever.

²¹ For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. 

Matthew 24:21

¹⁹ For in those days there will be tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the creation which God created until this time, nor ever shall be. 

Mark 13:19

²⁹ and come forth those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation. 

John 5:29

³⁵ And some of those of understanding shall fall, to refine them, purify them, and make them white, until the time of the end; because it is still for the appointed time. 

Daniel 11:35

⁴³ Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear! 

Matthew 13:43

1 Corinthians 14:13-18

Speaking in tongues is a gift of the Holy Spirit that edifies our Father but without an interpretation it does not edify others. 

It is a beautiful expression of our love for God.

1 Corinthians 14:13-18

¹³ Therefore let him who speaks in a tongue pray that he may interpret. ¹⁴ For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful. ¹⁵ What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding. ¹⁶ Otherwise, if you bless with the spirit, how will he who occupies the place of the uninformed say “Amen” at your giving of thanks, since he does not understand what you say? ¹⁷ For you indeed give thanks well, but the other is not edified.

¹⁸ I thank my God I speak with tongues more than you all; ¹⁹ yet in the church I would rather speak five words with my understanding, that I may teach others also, than ten thousand words in a tongue.

¹⁰ to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 

1 Corinthians 12:10

¹⁷ For you indeed give thanks well, but the other is not edified. 

1 Corinthians 14:17

¹⁷ And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; 

Mark 16:17

¹³ Others mocking said, “They are full of new wine.” 

Acts 2:13

Jeremiah 51:58

Man cannot erect walls broad enough to protect themselves. In the end, all of the walls the Israelites built would be destroyed. But He will keep in perfect peace those who trust in Him. He is our wall of defense! Trust Him with all that you have within you until He comes whose right it is to judge. Without God’s protection we fail. 

The fruit of the Spirit…is love.

Within Him peace is found. Without Him there is no peace.

For those removed from a sense of the Lord in their lives. The food that should give them strength for life and a zest for living only maintains them in their miserable state.

Jeremiah 51:58

⁵⁸ Thus says the Lord of hosts:

“The broad walls of Babylon shall be utterly broken, 

And her high gates shall be burned with fire;

The people will labor in vain,

And the nations, because of the fire;

And they shall be weary.”

Habakkuk 2:13

¹³ Behold, is it not of the Lord of hosts

That the peoples labor to feed the fire,

And nations weary themselves in vain?

Psalm 127:1

 ¹Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain. 

Psalm 127:2 

² It is vain for you to rise up early, To sit up late, To eat the bread of sorrows; For so He gives His beloved sleep. 

Acts 9:31

Gathered together in love and in the unity of the Holy Spirit grace abounds and lives are changed!

This peace was not due solely to Saul’s conversion. Tiberius, the emperor of Rome, died around this time. He was replaced by Caligula, who wanted to erect a statue of himself in the temple at Jerusalem. Thus Jewish energy was directed away from persecuting Christians and toward Caligula. Here we see God’s sovereign hand at work, giving the early church a short season of respite.

The character and nature of love as a moral category is defined particularly by the way that God the Father has loved the world and has shown a willingness to sacrifice what was most precious to Him: His beloved Son. 

The supreme attitude and action of Jesus Himself is the ideal expression of self-sacrificial love. He bore the shame and horror of the cross in order to bring healing and restoration to the world. 

“We love because he first loved us”

Acts 9:31

³¹ Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied

⁵ So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and increased in number daily. 

Acts 16:5

¹⁶ from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. 

Ephesians 4:16

²⁹ Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. 

Ephesians 4:29

⁹ Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him. 

Psalm 34:9

¹⁶ And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—

John 14:16

Romans 3:9-18

Our only hope is in Christ. When the world seems out of control, know that He is in total control. We can trust Abba with our life no matter the circumstance. He is kind to the just and the unjust and wants no one to perish. Who are we to judge? Judgement is His right alone. We are saved only by the blood of the Lamb. It is all about Him not us.

Pray for peace.

In other words, “Is there anything we can cling to for protection?” The answer is no, since all are under sin.

The collection of citations can be divided into two parts. The first half is made up of negative statements emphasizing humanity’s deficiencies; the second half mainly exposes human depravity.

Romans 3:9-18

⁹ What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin.

¹⁰ As it is written:

“There is none righteous, no, not one;

¹¹ There is none who understands;

There is none who seeks after God.

¹² They have all turned aside;

They have together become unprofitable;

There is none who does good, no, not one.”

¹³ “Their throat is an open tomb;

With their tongues they have practiced deceit”;

“The poison of asps is under their lips”;

¹⁴ “Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.”

¹⁵ “Their feet are swift to shed blood;

¹⁶ Destruction and misery are in their ways;

¹⁷ And the way of peace they have not known.”

¹⁸ “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

¹⁹ Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. 

Romans 3:19

²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 

Romans 3:23

³² For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all. 

Romans 11:32

²² But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. 

Galatians 3:22

³ They sharpen their tongues like a serpent; The poison of asps is under their lips. Selah 

Psalm 140:3

⁷ His mouth is full of cursing and deceit and oppression; Under his tongue is trouble and iniquity. 

Psalm 10:7

¹⁶ For their feet run to evil, And they make haste to shed blood. 

Proverbs 1:16

⁸ The way of peace they have not known, And there is no justice in their ways; They have made themselves crooked paths; Whoever takes that way shall not know peace. 

Isaiah 59:8

1 Corinthians 16:13-14

Without love behind our actions we are just an irritating noise…this is eerily the atmosphere in the United States today. We call each other to hatred under the guise of Conservative Christians.

Hate is not from God but from the Evil One.

The church at Corinth was a seriously troubled church. Infected with sexual immorality, split by factions that dragged each other into court, and crippled by abuse of the spiritual gifts, this church was in need of radical spiritual surgery. Though true believers, the Corinthians had a lot of growing up to do. They had to stop following the immoral, selfish, and contentious ways of their pagan neighbors in Corinth, the notoriously immoral city of that day. One can sense the disappointment of a hurt father in Paul’s stern words for the Corinthians. Yet Paul, like a surgeon, diagnosed the problem and aimed his efforts straight at the source: pride and a lack of true love in the church.

1 Corinthians 16:13-14

Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong. ¹⁴ Let all that you do be done with love.

⁸ And above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins.” 

1 Peter 4:8

³ But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 

2 Corinthians 11:3